Montgomery Animal Watch

June 30, 2005

The following were among cases recently received by the Montgomery County Animal Services Division. Call 240-773-5054 for recorded information on topics including the Montgomery County Animal Shelter's hours and location, adoption and licensing procedures, rabies clinics and low-cost neutering.

Cat Freed From Stockade Fence

GAITHERSBURG, Newbury Rd., 24000 block, June 17. A woman tried to free a gray cat with a back leg wedged in the wooden panels of a stockade fence. As she was stationing a recycling bin under the cat's dangling front paws, it panicked and inflicted a deep scratch to her arm. The woman got medical treatment, and a Montgomery County Humane Society staffer freed the cat and took it to a veterinarian. Although the cat did not have a substantial injury to its leg, the animal was kept for treatment of an unrelated wound.

Fire Leaves Dog Homeless

SILVER SPRING, Shorefield Ct., 12000 block, June 19. Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Service called the Animal Services Division for assistance during a fire in an apartment building. By the time an animal services officer arrived, two parakeets, a hamster and a dog had been rescued from the blaze. The parakeets' owner retrieved the birds, and the hamster's owner also put in a claim. The dog's owner, however, could not take possession because her home was uninhabitable. The Red Cross assisted the woman with living arrangements, and the cocker spaniel was taken to the animal shelter until its owner can claim it.

Wayward Sheep Returned

BOYDS, Ganley Rd., 15000 block, June 19. Responding to a call about a large animal that had wandered into a driveway, an animal services officer found a sheep that appeared to be "enchanted" by a plastic deer on the lawn nearby. After making inquiries, the officer was directed to a neighborhood farm, whose owner confirmed that her granddaughter had lost Molly, a pet matching the description of the trespasser. The officer harnessed the sheep and returned it to the farm.